Satellite communication systems may include both a receive antenna and a transmit antenna in order to provide bi-directional communication capabilities to a platform. The receive antenna and the transmit antenna are separated from each other to prevent the receive antenna from being overwhelmed by the EM transmissions generated by the transmit antenna. The antennas are also located along a portion of the platform that has a direct line of sight to the satellite(s).
However, providing a separation between the receive antenna and the transmit antenna may be difficult when the physical real estate onboard the platform for the antennas is limited. For instance, on a small aircraft such as a drone, the antennas would ideally be located along a top surface of the fuselage of the drone at a sufficient separation from each other in order to preclude the transmit antenna from generating Radio Frequency (RF) interference at the receive antenna. Yet, there may not be enough physical area on the fuselage to provide such separation. Further, utilizing multiple antennas, even when they are sufficiently separated from each other, involves the use of two separate enclosures that are each subjected to the environment and therefore, provide the possibility of multiple points of failure for the communication system. Further still, there is an ongoing desire to provide bi-directional communication systems that are of a light weight and compact design.